Wednesday, 22 February 2017

"The Real…John Barry" by JOHN BARRY (2016 Sony/Legacy 3CD Compilation of Remasters - 1965 to 1995) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 100s Of Others Is Available in my

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CLASSIC 1960s MUSIC On CD - Exception Remasters

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"...From Prendergast With Love…"

The
last half-decent CD I had officially issued by Columbia/CBS covering John
Barry's magnificent Movie Soundtrack output was "Themeology" - a
stunning 23-track 'Best Of' singular CD issued in 1997 – still available to
this day and for peanuts money too. "The Real...John Barry" feels
like a massive triple-disc 'Expanded Edition' of that much praised CD
Compilation - but typically it's a tale of two cities - much to recommend and
yet another missed opportunity.

This
2016 'Ultimate Collection' 3CD-set stretches to 54-tracks covering 1965 to 1995
on Columbia, CBS and Epic Records and even after all these decades – has many
'first time on CD' moments that will thrill fans to the core of their dapper
beings. It's also very cleverly sequenced – an art form in itself for
compilations like this.

That
doesn't mean that "The Real…John Barry" isn't without problems. It
won't take a Mensa Membership for folks to notice that some of the Bond stuff
has copyright dates that doesn't match up – "From Russia With Love"
listed as 'recorded prior to 1972' and the title song to "Diamonds Are
Forever" and "All Time High" from "Octopussy" done in
1995 – so obviously these are not the United Artists original releases of 1963,
1971 or 1983. But more importantly to me and other fellow lovers of 'Sounds
Good' music - this triple-CD set is a 'Columbia/Legacy' Reissue - so therefore
comes with genuinely great Remastered Audio despite not advising where, when or
by whom these were mastered.

And
what a journey of memories this triple is - listening to "Space
March" from 1967's "You Only Live Twice" or "Who Will Buy
My Yesterdays" from 1970's "Ready When You Are J.B." (a rarity
on CD) or the uber-cool of Harry Palmer's "The Ipcress File" (Michael
Caine's dapper British spy) will blow most people's socks off.Not only is the music utterly wonderful –
swirling strings and echoed pianos steeped in that fantastic 60ts sound and
Barry's knack for hooky melodies – it sounds toppermost of the poppermost.

So
even if it is a mishmash or originals vs. re-recordings (and I can't emphasise
this enough) - "The Real...John Barry" is a fantastic listen
throughout all three discs. Here are the Mister Kiss Kiss Bang Bangs and
Midnight Cowboys…

UK
released 14 October 2016 – "The Real…John Barry" by JOHN BARRY on Sony/Legacy
88985373242 (Barcode 889853732425) is a 3CD/54-Track compilation of Remasters and plays out
as follows:

18.
End Title (original from the 1995 Soundtrack to "The Scarlett
Letter")

The
foldout three-way card digipak is hardly anything great to look at but does at
least have track lists beneath the three see-through plastic trays. But there's
no booklet and correspondingly no real appreciation of the goodies on sale. The
AUDIO as I say is fabulous and even though the versions from the 60ts are
re-recordings - they're done within grasping distance of the originals so sound
amazingly similar. Much of it is in glorious Stereo too. Many of us will recall
the Sunsilk adverts which tapped into the superb B-side "The Girl With The
Sun In Her Hair" - Roger Moore and Tony Curtis suave in the 70ts TV show
"The Persuaders" and think of Rizzo played by Dustin Hoffman in
"Midnight Cowboy" as he takes his last ride on that bus into Miami -
all of this music sublime. But few of us will know later soundtracks like
"The Specialists", "Across The Sea Of Time" and "Cry,
Cry The Beloved Country" - and they're discoveries worth savouring.

Also
- on a personal note - the "Ready When You Are, J.B. - John Barry Plays
His Great Movie Hits" CBS/Columbia Records compilation LP released in
February 1970 had 12 tracks - and all except "We Have All The Time In The
World" are here as far as I can see (CBS Records 63952 in the UK -
Columbia CS 1003 in the USA). It's a stunner - a forgotten and lost nugget from
the decade's first year that rarely ever gets mentioned outside of Soundtrack
circles. But as a musical and evocative listen - it's practically flawless and
along with its new 1969 re-recordings of film themes it also offers other
exclusive JB tracks like "The More Things Change" and
"Afternoon" that aren't on anything else. And as it's never been
officially on CD before - its 'almost' total presence here is welcome news indeed
for rabid fans and the casual listener alike. Using tracks across all three
discs - you can CD sequence that forgotten LP as follows...

Downsides
- die-hard aficionados will know that beautiful music from "Somewhere In
Time" and "High Road To China" and huge dollops more is all
missing because they're linked to MCA and other Record companies outside of the
Sony remit (you can't have it all). And it's arguable that every one of the
Bond CDs - which were expanded and remastered by EMI Capitol in 2003 with huge
dollops of previously unreleased tracks in stunning audio - are both must buys
and conspicuous by their 'original issue' absence. John Barry's name is so
synonymous with James Bond 007 that at least some of it should have been
represented here (see my separate reviews for the Expanded Edition 2003 CD
Remasters of the original soundtracks to "Thunderball", "You
Only Live Twice" and "Diamonds Are Forever"). And I wish there
was better annotation.

It's
been said a hundred times before - SONY need to treat their most famous
Soundtrack son (John Barry Prendergast) with the respect of a genuinely decent
and properly annotated 5 to 6CD retrospective Box Set.

But
in the meantime (and on face value) - for less than six post-Brexit pounds you
can have the well-endowed 3CD digipak "The Real...John Barry" and
wallow in a film-music genius who (along with John Williams) won five Oscars
and is still sorely missed...

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About Me

To date I've over 3500 posts/reviews and 80+ Listmania Lists on Amazon UK - most are for quality music CD REMASTERS and FILMS on BLU RAY.

I'm a Top 15 Reviewer on Amazon UK and have been a 'Hall Of Fame' Reviewer for some years now...

They feature recommendations from years of trawling through digipaks and flicks. I tend to highlight reissues and remasters that have slipped through the net and movies on DVD and BLU RAY that deserve your attention/reappraisal.

My music reviews are in-depth - focusing on decent remasters - interesting imports - rarities - info that helps a purchase decision etc. And I often provide a Discography for Box Sets and multiples and detailed track lists for reissues.

Loved the awesome re-issues of Steve McQueen by PREFAB SPROUT and Strangers Almanac by WHISKEYTOWN [with Ryan Adams]. The three definitive Bear Family Series - Street Corner Symphonies (1934 to 1958 Vocal Groups), Blowing The Fuse (1945 to 1960 R'n'B - most reviewed) and Sweet Soul Music (1961 to 1975 - all 15 reviewed).

Check out the beautiful Scottish Folk of Black Water by KRIS DREVER (2006) and the Sahara rocking beat of TINARIWEN'S Aman Iman - Water Is Life. 2011 saw Jethro Tull's Aqualung receive a stunning makeover by Steve Wilson of Porcupine Tree and 2012 has Just As I Am by Bill Withers be given a top remaster by Big Break Records of the UK. Loving the 2013 Japanese SHM-CD reissues of J.J. Cale and the 2012 to 2015 Japan-Only Atlantic 1000: Best R&B Collection (see Joe Turner reviews). Small Faces Here Come The Nice and The Blue Nile's Hats & Peace At Last Deluxe Editions for 2014. Digging Edsel's 4CD Box Sets For The Beat and The Sound - superb. Edsel's Wilson Pickett and Percy Sledge CD Reissues from late 2016 are also superb.

Films - The Help, Lincoln, The Bands Visit, Man On A Ledge, The Grey, Mr. Nobody, Third Star, Caramel, Easy-A, Crash, United 93, The Insider, Death To Smoochy, Babel, Kinsey, Bright Star, Stranger Than Fiction, Imagine Me & You, The Namesake, After The Wedding, Seraphim Falls, Michael Clayton, Frankie Go Boom, Infamous, Gran Torino, The Blind Side, Invictus, Crazy Heart, Ondine, Amelie, Four Lions, Young Victoria, Untouchable, Jo Nesbo's Headhunters and The Secret In Their Eyes are what's most impressed in the last while. The Shawshank Redemption is for me the greatest film ever made, Cinema Paradiso the most beautiful and Nil By Mouth the most powerful.

I've also raved about gorgeous new restorations of The Italian Job, Goldfinger, African Queen, Back To The Future, O Brother Where Art Thou?, North By Northwest, To Catch A Thief, To Kill A Mockingbird and The Sting on Blu Ray - can't recommend these enough.

I'm Irish (originally from Dublin) and married with 3 grown-up kids - one of which has autism (The Beautiful Dean).

I was a vinyl rarities buyer and put-upon expert in Reckless Records (Soho, London) for over 20 years and have contributed to many of the Record Collector Rare Record Price Guides.

Currently freelance writer/reviewer. Have written four screenplays - "The Cloths Of Heaven", "Silas", "An English Lady - The Eglantyne Jebb Story" and "Full Of Grace" which I'll discuss with Film Industry Insiders.